Doing Things
Doing Things "Players, some of the things you’ll do in a Fate game require you to roll dice to see if your character succeeds or not. You will always roll the dice when you’re opposing another character with your efforts, or when there’s a significant obstacle in the way of your effort. Otherwise, just say what your character does and assume it happens." - Fate SRD, on Taking Action In FATE Spin, most actions are tied to skills. The player says they want to do something, and the GM figures out which skill it falls under. Players roll four six-sided dice to determine the outcome. The result of the action depends on the numbers that come up. A good roll has a positive result (+1, +2, +3, +4), while a bad roll has a negative result (-1, -2, -3, -4). The player adds the result of their roll to their character's skill. As an in-game example, consider a character with a +2 in Mechanics. They choose to disarm a nearby trap. The GM decides that the trap isn't too hard to disarm and sets the difficulty at 2. Different results play out depending on the luck of the dice roll. Using a Different Skill Sometimes players believe a different skill could be applied to the situation. In this case, they can try to convince the GM: '''Player: '''I want to convince this guy that I'm a guard. '''GM: '''Roll Persuade. '''Player: '''My persuade is pretty low... can I scare him into believing I'm a guard? '''GM: '''Yeah, alright. But he might not keep his mouth shut for long. Roll Provoke. As always, the GM has final rule over what does or does not work. Reacting Sometimes characters do things, and sometimes characters have things done to them. In the latter cases, the GM calls for a roll. Fate Points At the start of every session, players are handed three Fate Points which can be used to do one of four things: # Gain an immediate +2 to a roll. # Reroll and take the new result. # Pull out a useful item you were unlikely to have. # Save your life. Players can earn more Fate Points if the GM sees an opportunity to use their Trouble. The GM will say something like, "Your Firey-Tempered Rogue probably doesn't like being threatened by the palace guards. I'll give you a Fate Point if you make things worse." The player can then choose to take the point or ignore the task. Contests ''"Whenever two or more characters have mutually exclusive goals, but they aren’t trying to harm each other directly, they’re in a contest. Arm wrestling matches, races or other sports competitions, and public debates are all good examples of contests." - ''Fate SRD on Contests A contest consists of several exchanges where the opposing parties roll against one another to see who "wins". Contests are won by the first person (or group) to win three exchanges. Sometimes the opposition isn't a person. It might be boulder dashing towards the adventurers, Indiana Jones style. Or it may involve multiple skills, like a thief breaking into a mansion and sneaking through security. Magic and Supernatural Powers Most actions are limited by what's physically possible. If a player says, "I want to roll Physique to punch through this steel door" the GM will probably say no. It doesn't matter how high the player rolls. Their flesh-and-bone hand isn't going to break through steel. The exception to this rule is magic. Magic changes what's allowed. If a character has magical tattoos that give them superhuman strength, they might just be able to punch down that door. They wouldn't be able to punch through ten layers of steel, but punching one layer is now in the realm of possibility.